知产慧学堂丨法国外观设计申请

法国拥有世界第一部《知识产权法典》，也是第一个颁布《外观设计法》的国家，由法国国家工业产权局（即INPI）负责注册和管理外观设计。法国工业品外观设计采用洛加诺国际外观设计分类法。

官方语言：法语

• 展示外观设计的产品绘图或图片;
• 专利的名称以及专利详细说明书;
• 有效的身份证明文件，申请人为个人，需提供个人身份证复印件，申请人为单位，需营业执照复印件;
• 申请人姓名、详细地址、联系方式、设计人姓名等资料。
• 优先申请国家、申请号及申请日期（如要求优先权），优先权证明文件副本及其翻译可在申请日的三个月内补交。
• 委任书（如委托代理人）

注：1.法国外观设计分为普通申请和简单申请两种形式。INPI的审查结束后，针对不同的申请形式，公开的时间也不同。

2.如以多人名义申请，或者申请人在法国、欧盟或欧洲经济区内没有住所，则必须委托代理人。

1.提交申请：法国专利局不对外观设计申请开展实质的审查，但为了避免申请被异议，申请人应在提交申请前对现有外观设计开展检索;

2.受理：专利局在接到申请文件后几日内，会向专利申请人提供一份申请表副本。该副本会注明申请人向专利局提交申请的日期和编号，就是申请日和申请号，专利局会给申请人开具申请费付款证明;

3.审查：由于INPI不对外观设计申请进行实质审查，INPI审查申请的形式，如是否按规定填写申请表、是否已缴纳申请费等，并审查设计是否违背公序良俗。如申请不符合规定，INPI将通知申请人，申请人可在审查意见书规定的期限内进行修正;

4.公开：法国外观设计申请分为普通申请和简单申请两种形式。INPI的审查结束后，针对不同的申请形式，公开的时间也不同。对于普通申请，INPI会立即将该外观设计申请在其公报上公开。

申请人也可以请求延期公开，只要申请人在延期期间前没有放弃，可在提交外观设计申请之日后最多36个月内向INPI提出公开申请。如申请人未在规定期限内提出公开申请，INPI将宣告该未公开的外观设计申请所生权利灭失;

5.公开意见书：外观设计申请被公开后，INPI将向申请人颁发公开意见书，该意见书可以作为推定权利人身份的证明文件;

6.颁发注册证书：当专利申请通过审查后，法国专利局将授予专利权，并向申请人发放专利注册证书。

注：a.法国外观设计的注册从申请注册之日生效，有效期为5年，并在25年内可以每5年续展一次。

在2001年10月1日之前提交的外观设计仍然可以不经续展，从其提交之日起25年内保护其权利；在2001年10月1日之前享有优先权的外观设计，仍然可以在25年内保护权利，直至期间届满。

b.法国外观设计授权时间约6个月。

法国外观设计费用如下：

制图：德同智汇

注：1.目前欧元与人民币的汇率为1欧元:7.8968人民币，如欧盟外观设计申请官费为38欧元，人民币约为282.4844人民币。

2.外观设计保护的续展在首次注册期满前6个月内提交申请，专利缴费时间超过规定缴费时间一个月的，每多一个月，加收一定比例的全额年费作为滞纳金。

1.普通申请在通过审查后，会即刻将该设计刊登于公报上，此时申请人可要求延期公开，但延期时间不得超过申请日后36个月。

2.简单申请通过审查后，不会立即将该设计刊登在公报上，因此常见于频繁更新产品形状和外观（包括装饰物）的产品上。但延期公开时间不能超过申请日起30个月。

3.不论采用哪种申请方式，如果申请人没有在规定时间内申请公开该设计，则视为自动放弃专利申请，但仍享受版权保护。

4.当外观设计被公开后，法国国家工业产权部会向申请人发出公开意见书，在理想情况下，一件法国外观专利设计申请最短可在提出申请后3～4个月收到公开意见书，而该意见书可直接作为专利所有人的推定文件使用。

法国外观设计专利的申请条件：

法国《知识产权法典》第L511-2条规定，只有新颖且独特的外观设计才能受到保护。

1.新颖性

法国《知识产权法典》第L511-3条规定:“外观设计的新颖性是指提交外观设计的注册申请或优先权日之前，没有任何相同的外观设计被公开。如果仅在无关紧要的细节上存在不同，视为相同的外观设计。”

通过出版、使用或其他方式已提供给公众的外观设计视为公开。公开不仅指相关设计在法国国内或欧洲境内被公开，“为公众所知”是判断新颖性的主要标准。

法国《知识产权法典》第L511-6条中有关于宽限期的法律规定，当申请人或其继承人在提交外观设计的注册申请或优先权日之前的12个月内公开相关外观设计的，不丧失新颖性。

2.独特性

法国《知识产权法典》第L511-4条规定：“外观设计的独创性是指有知情使用者对该外观设计的整体直观印象与在注册申请或优先权日之前的任何外观设计都不相同。”

France has the world's first "intellectual property code", is also the first country to promulgate "design law". The French National Industrial Property Office is responsible for the registration and management of designs. Logano international Design classification is adopted for industrial design in France.

Official language: French

• Product drawings or picturesshowing the design;
• Thenameof the patent and the specification of the patent;
• If the applicant is an individual, a copy of his/herID cardis required; if the applicant is a unit, a copy ofbusiness licenseis required;
• Applicant's name, detailed address, contact information, designer's name and other information.
• Priority country of application, application number and application date (if the priority is claimed), a copy of the proof of priority and its translation may be submitted within three months from the date of application.
• Letter of appointment, eg by proxy

Note:1. French appearance design is divided into two forms: ordinary application and simple application.

After the INPI review is completed, different forms of application will be disclosed at different times.

2. If the applicant applies in the name of more than one person, or if the applicant has no domicile in France, the European Union or the EEA, an agent must be appointed.

1. Submission of applications:The French Patent Office does not conduct substantive examination of design applications, but in order to avoid objections to the application, the applicant should conduct a search of the existing designs before submitting the application；

2. Acceptance:The Patent Office will provide the applicant with a copy of the application form within a few days of receipt of the application document.

The copy will indicate the date and number of the application submitted by the applicant to the Patent Office, that is, the application date and application number, and the Patent Office will issue the applicant with proof of payment for the application fee；

3. Review:Since INPI does not conduct substantive review on design applications, INPI will review the form of application, such as whether the application form is filled in according to regulations, whether the application fee has been paid, etc., and whether the design violates public order and good customs.

If the application does not meet the requirements, INPI will notify the applicant and the applicant may amend the application within the period specified in the review opinion；

4. Openness:The French design application can be divided into two forms: ordinary application and simple application. After the INPI review is completed, different forms of application will be disclosed at different times.

For ordinary applications, INPI will immediately publish the design application in its bulletin.The applicant may also request an extension of disclosure, provided that the applicant has not waived the extension period prior to the date of submission of the design application, to INPI within a maximum of 36 months from the date of submission of the design application.

If the applicant fails to file a public application within the prescribed time limit, INPI will declare the rights arising from the unpublished design application forfeited；

5.INPI issues public Opinion:After the design application is made public, INPI will issue a public opinion to the applicant, which can be used as proof of the identity of the presumptive right holder；

6. Issue of registration certificate:When the patent application is approved, the French Patent Office will grant the patent right and issue the patent registration certificate to the applicant。

Note: a. Registration of French designs takes effect from the date of application and is valid for 5 years and can be renewed every 5 years for 25 years.

Designs submitted before October 1, 2001 are still protected for 25 years from the date of submission without renewal.Designs entitled to priority prior to 1 October 2001 can still be protected for 25 years until the expiration of the period.

b. The authorization period of French design is about 6 months.

The cost of French appearance design is as follows:

Made：DETONG UNIMORAL

Note:1. The current exchange rate between Euro and RMB is 1 euro :7.8968 RMB. For example, the official fee of eu design application is 38 Euros, and THE RMB is about 282.4844 RMB.

2.An application for renewal of design protection shall be submitted within 6 months before the expiration of the first registration period.

Where the payment of patent exceeds the prescribed payment time by one month, a certain proportion of the annual fee shall be charged as a late fee for each additional month.

French Appearance Design Ordinary Application and Simple Application Difference

1. The design will be published in the bulletin immediately after the approval of the ordinary application.

At this time, the applicant may request an extension of publication, but the extension shall not exceed 36 months after the application date;

2. The design will not be published in the bulletin immediately after a simple application is approved, so it is often seen on products that frequently update the shape and appearance of the product (including ornaments).

3.However, the delayed publicity time shall not exceed 30 months from the date of application;

No matter which application method is adopted, if the applicant does not apply for the disclosure of the design within the specified time, the patent application will be regarded as automatically waived, but the copyright protection will still be enjoyed.

4.When the design is published, the French National Department of Industrial Property will issue a public opinion to the applicant. Ideally, a French design patent application can receive a public opinion at least 3 to 4 months after the filing, and the opinion can be directly used as a presumptive document of the patent owner.

French design patent application conditions:

According to Article L511-2 of the French Intellectual Property Code, only novel and unique designs can be protected.

1. The novelty

Article L511-3 of The French Intellectual Property Code stipulates: "The novelty of a design means that no identical design has been made public before the registration application or priority date of the design is submitted. If they differ only in minor details, they are considered the same design.

Designs already made available to the public by means of publication, use or other means are deemed to be made public. "Public knowledge" is the main criterion for novelty, not only when the design is made public in France or In Europe.

The grace period stipulated in Article L511-6 of the French Intellectual Property Code does not result in loss of novelty when the applicant or his successor discloses the relevant design within 12 months prior to the date of submitting the registration application or priority of the design.

2. The uniqueness

Article L511-4 of the French Intellectual Property Code states: "Originality of a design means that an informed user's overall intuitive impression of the design is different from any design prior to the registration application or priority date."